The present invention relates generally to searching for a performance data set having a tone (i.e., sound) generation pattern that matches a query pattern input by a user, and more particularly to a tone data processing apparatus and method using such a search technique. It should be noted that the term “tone” is used herein to refer to any of all types of sounds, such as a voice, scratch sound, noise, effect sound and environmental sound as well as a musical sound.
In the field of electronic musical instruments, there has heretofore been well known a function so called “automatic accompaniment”. Generally, in an automatic accompaniment, tones corresponding to component notes designated through operation of a human player or user are audibly generated in accordance with an accompaniment sequence indicated by an automatic accompaniment data set. Such an automatic accompaniment data set can include one or more melody tones and/or rhythm tones. Using such an automatic accompaniment function, even a single human player can implement a performance of abundant tones including chord tones and rhythm tones. Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Publication No. 2010-102076 (hereinafter referred to as “the relevant patent literature”) discloses a technique which allows a user to search for an automatic accompaniment data set by use of any of a music piece name, artist name, album name, musical genre, tempo, musical time and other keywords and then execute a performance in time with tones based on an automatic accompaniment sequence indicated by a searched-out automatic accompaniment data set.
With the search method disclosed in the relevant patent literature, however, a considerable time and labor would be required for searching out a user-desired automatic accompaniment data set from among a multiplicity of automatic accompaniment data sets stored in a database, if sound source data contained in the database are enormous in quantity. Besides, with the search method disclosed in the relevant patent literature, it is necessary for a user to know in advance the above-mentioned information, such as a music piece name, and then input the information, and thus, the user cannot search out a desired automatic accompaniment data set intuitively and efficiently. Further, generally, automatic accompaniment data sets each comprise a combination of a plurality of performance parts, such as a bass, drum, keyboard. With the search method disclosed in the relevant patent literature, however, when a phrase of a particular performance part occurs to a user, the user cannot search out an automatic accompaniment data set using such a phrase of the particular performance part.